Live From Crystal Symphony - A New Adventure - Reykjavik to Dover

[Keith1010]

Daily Reflections Program and Waterside Dinner Menu for September 16.

 

Cheers,

Keith

 

Sept 16 Reflections.pdf

 

September 16 Waterside.pdf

 

 

Sept 16 Reflections.pdf September 16 Waterside.pdf

[Cruiserbunny199]

Packing for our Symphony cruise on Wednesday and just wanted to check that slippers are provided in the suite please?

Assuming they are, is more than one size available or are they all very large?

[Keith1010]

Slippers are provided.  The larger one they don't always have and I am not sure this time around.

 

Keith

[Cruiserbunny199]

3 minutes ago, Keith1010 said:

Slippers are provided.  The larger one they don't always have and I am not sure this time around.

 

Keith

Thank you Keith. I doubt that we will need the larger one.

[Keith1010]

Just now, Cruiserbunny199 said:

Thank you Keith. I doubt that we will need the larger one.

Perfect. You will be fine then.

 

Keith

[vistaman]

I am in delay to wish you a great time ... it seems next saturday you will be in belgium unfortunately not in my hometown ( boo to C HQ😛 ) but in that desolate port called  Zeebrugge

I am unable to visit the ship due to a very serious medical condition , must go to hospital on wednesday  for further treatment 

If you do not intend to go to Bruges , i  recommend you to take a taxi and ask to bring you to Zoute in Knokke , the most upmarket place on the Belgian coast - your lady will like the shops 

the shuttle will bring you to Blankenberge  what is the opposite of Knokke zoute - the most common place on the coast 

opposite the local church in Zeebrugge there is a good restaurant but you have to book ( i am not receiving commissions ) 

[Keith1010]

36 minutes ago, vistaman said:

I am in delay to wish you a great time ... it seems next saturday you will be in belgium unfortunately not in my hometown ( boo to C HQ😛 ) but in that desolate port called  Zeebrugge

I am unable to visit the ship due to a very serious medical condition , must go to hospital on wednesday  for further treatment 

If you do not intend to go to Bruges , i  recommend you to take a taxi and ask to bring you to Zoute in Knokke , the most upmarket place on the Belgian coast - your lady will like the shops 

the shuttle will bring you to Blankenberge  what is the opposite of Knokke zoute - the most common place on the coast 

opposite the local church in Zeebrugge there is a good restaurant but you have to book ( i am not receiving commissions ) 

Thank you so much for the good wishes and the advice.

 

I do have a tour planned for Bruges.

 

I am so sorry about your medical situation and I send you positive thoughts on your treatment.

 

Best to you.

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

 

 

 

Posting early today.

 

Greetings From Crystal Symphony

 

Including a photo and video from yesterday's sail away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the aspects we love about cruising is meeting people and creating friendships. Today we met with friends Bill and Carolyn who we first met on a Crystal Cruise many years ago and then we sailed with them again prior to this cruise. We spent time with them today and it was so great to see them. They are a lovely couple. Bill does read CC and sometimes posts.

 

Our tour in Liverpool is an example of why returning to the same city provides an opportunity to see more things including touring the same theme as we did yesterday. In the case of Liverpool there is so much we have not seen unrelated to the Beatles inside the city and in places involving longer drives outside the city.

 

At the same time, even though we repeated the theme of a Beatles Liverpool tour we saw new areas related to The Beatles and we returned to other areas where changes have been made in recent year. In some cases, this was subtle including new statues of The Fab Four, John Lennon and their late Manager Brian Epstein. Another example involves changes to Strawberry Fields made about five years ago including pathways (and when it winds it is noted as The Long And Winding Road) as well as a new building and all of this is due to the work of The Salvation Army.

 

We also learned new things and parts related to new things still being learned about the Fab Four. For example, when the Beatles performed with the name The Beatles it was thought that the very first time was at the Casbah Coffee Club which we visited for the second time on the tour. Since our last visit it was learned their first performance as The Beatles was at The Jacaranda. When we say The Beatles when they performed at the Jacaranda this included Paul, George and Ringo along with Pete Best (drummer who preceded Ringo) and Stuart Sutcliffe who sadly passed at a relatively young age.

 

There is still more for us to see including the inside of homes of Paul and John, the Beatles Museum, and several other venues and then there is so much to see non-Beatles related. This is all part of discovery when cruising or touring by land.

 

So now you know.

 

 

OK let’s talk food.

 

There were some items of interest to us from the Waterside menu of September 14 when we were invited to dinner at Osteria, so we asked if we could special order them for the following night.  We avoid special ordering items not on the menu. We find there are many items of our liking to choose from for dinner on the Waterside menu.

 

 

Today we arrived to Ireland via Dun Laoghaire. Crystal Symphony anchored off Dun Laoghaire with tender service provided between this coastal town and Symphony. A shuttle ran between Dun Laoghaire and the city of Dublin.

 

Dublin is the largest city in Ireland with 1.3 million residents. The Vikings founded Dublin in the 9thcentury. Dublin is known as the birthplace of some of the most known literary figures such as Oscar Wilde and George Bernard and starting in the 20th century it is known as a modern/cosmopolitan city. We have visited this wonderful city several times including Christ Church Cathedral, Trinity College, Dublin Castle, and several of its museums as well as walking several main streets.

 

 

I will close now.

 

Cheers from Ireland

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Texas Tillie]

5 hours ago, Cruiserbunny199 said:

Packing for our Symphony cruise on Wednesday and just wanted to check that slippers are provided in the suite please?

Assuming they are, is more than one size available or are they all very large?

 

As to slippers, if you have petite feet, like me (6ish ladies), you'd trip over your own feet if you tried wearing what they provide. One size does not fit all.

 

Patty

[Keith1010]

And then there is me.  The regular ones are about an inch too small for me. One thing I learned over the years is while I could slim down my stomach not the case with the feet. Sometimes we can get the larger ones for me but Anne Marie had asked and it appears they are not available.  Same goes for hotels. Sometimes they have them and other times they don't.  

 

However I am happy to say I can fit in the bed.  I think if you are most NBA players that is a challenge on land and at sea.

 

Keith

[BWIVince]

2 hours ago, Texas Tillie said:

 

As to slippers, if you have petite feet, like me (6ish ladies), you'd trip over your own feet if you tried wearing what they provide. One size does not fit all.

 

Patty

 

If you cut a pair in half to fit your feet, I'll take the other half to tape onto the ones in my room so they come close to fitting my feet.  😄 

 

Vince

[nancygp]

48 minutes ago, BWIVince said:

 

If you cut a pair in half to fit your feet, I'll take the other half to tape onto the ones in my room so they come close to fitting my feet.  😄 

 

Vince

Problem solved…bring your own slippers! 😃

 

Nancy

[Txcotn]

In an emergency, any size will do. I once packed my shoes and was about to disembark barefoot (in Athens😱) when I remembered the slippers! Even though I identify with Patty (6 1/2) I made it work with the size 12 slippers. Then the comedian sat in front of me on the bus🙄.

 

PS I found my shoes right away and did not have to travel all the way home in slippers.

[Keith1010]

TxCotn, we were on board when that happened to someone. They had to bebark in slippers.

 

And I know of another situation where the person had packed all their clothes in the luggage and only had the bathrobe.It wasn't easy but a member of the crew was able to retrieve a piece of his luggage so that he could dress in something other than a bathrobe.

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

A good evening or a very good morning to all of you depending on where you are.

 

For us it is a very good morning on Crystal Symphony.

 

The 17th (today) is a sea day so I am sharing not only the dinner menu for this evening but the luncheon menu from Waterside plus the Daily Reflections program.

 

Last evening while it was not an official formal night the menu featured many items which you would find for formal night.  Many great choices.

 

I will mention them later but the modern cuisine Sea Bass was amazing and it was unlike any other entree of Sea Bass we have had before.  

 

And the salad I suspect had the input of the nutritionalist.  

 

OK menus and daily reflections follow.

 

Cheers,

 

Sept 17 Waterside Dinner Menu.pdf

 

September 17 Waterside Lunch Menu.pdf

 

Sept 17 Reflections.pdf

 

 

[Cruiserbunny199]

In transit guests in Dover tomorrow I highly recommend visit to Dover Castle.

[Keith1010]

 

Greeting From Crystal Symphony

 

I am posting early.

 

Photo Collage of The Vintage Room.

 

 

For those of you who have not yet sailed Crystal some information follows.

 

The Vintage room offers the opportunity to enjoy wine or champagne lunches or wine dinners which pair each item with a food course.  Lunches often involve three or four courses and dinner Vintage Rooms often pair six or so courses.

 

On a voyage one or more group Vintage Rooms are offered for lunch and dinner. How many depends on length of cruise, itinerary, and interest. One can also reserve the Vintage Room for a private dinner and the price is the same no matter how many attend based on a maximum of 12 people on Symphony and 14 on Serenity.

Each Vintage Room is led by the Head Sommelier and the food is prepared under the direction of the Executive Chef and the Pastry Chef.

 

Dinner last evening was at Waterside and it was another wow.

We enjoyed some very amazing items.  The salad was excellent, and you could see the influence of the nutritionist. The sea bass came from the modern menu, and it was amazing. I think the best Sea Bass we have ever had. Three pieces and one cooked in a different manner than the other two providing a nice contrast in flavor.

 

Add to the experience an amazing wait staff and beautiful dining room venue.

 

 

And we ended the meal with a beautiful moon and took a photo when we got back to our room.

 

 

Today is the final full day of this cruise and a sea day.

 

The program featured 35 enrichment programs.  This included three lectures on The UK and the making of the modern world, The Criminal underbelly of International Trade and After the Abdication: The Duke and Duchess of Windsor in Exile.

 

I will close now. We are enjoying a fun filled time on this terrific sea day.

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

 

 

[USCAdventurer]

Enjoy the sea day, Keith and Anne Marie.  Will you get off the ship in Dover and do a tour or will you be staying on the ship for the next voyage?  Love the pictures and your daily commentary.

[GonzoWCS]

Following along.  Great read so far.  Thanks for doing this Keith1010!

 

Cheers

[Keith1010]

50 minutes ago, USCAdventurer said:

Enjoy the sea day, Keith and Anne Marie.  Will you get off the ship in Dover and do a tour or will you be staying on the ship for the next voyage?  Love the pictures and your daily commentary.

David, we plan to be in Dover again on another cruise so we will do a tour then. We have also toured around on a prior cruise.

We have a few tours on this next cruise so we didn't want to add another one.

Keith

[Keith1010]

3 hours ago, GonzoWCS said:

Following along.  Great read so far.  Thanks for doing this Keith1010!

 

Cheers

You are very welcome and thank you so much for following along.'

Keith

[Keith1010]

As our first of two cruises is coming to a close I wanted to share a few thoughts.

 

On this cruise I have said a couple of times this is the most delicious item I have had. I said the same thing on our recent Serenity cruise. Same thing on three other cruises last year starting with the inaugural.

 

Each entree was different. Each entree had a very appealing presentation. Each entree was cooked perfectly and was unique with the mix of ingredients.

 

I find myself saying this more since New Crystal started than with former Crystal. We loved former Crystal's cuisine enjoying many memorable dishes but I am finding Waterside on new Crystal to be the best yet.

 

To me it is similar to dining in a specialty restaurant.  The main difference would be size of crowd and dining venue.

 

What I believe says even more is something my father told me years ago and I realize as I have grown older. It's our taste buds. The challenge as we age is some food just doesn't taste as it used to. Sometimes, we blame this on the food preparation but the reality is our taste buds.

 

Anyway, to me the cuisine on New Crystal is a perfect example is why I say if you enjoyed old Crystal new Crystal is even better.

 

 

Cheers,

 

Keith 

[USCAdventurer]

I agree with you, Keith 100%, that eating in waterside is like eating in a specialty restaurant venue.  Its really fabulous!

[Txcotn]

13 hours ago, Keith1010 said:

TxCotn, we were on board when that happened to someone. They had to bebark in slippers.

 

 

 

Keith

That had to be me🙄 No one else is dumb enough to pack their shoes!

[Txcotn]

Yes, Dover castle is a great place to visit. Another is the WW2 museum inside the White Cliffs, truly an excellent experience.